First-Time Home Buyers Fare Well In Charlotte: Study

CHARLOTTE, NC — We all know Charlotte has a lot going for it, from family friendliness to ease of driving, according to some recent reports. One new study is adding a new accolade to the Queen City’s stack. Charlotte is ranked 15th out of the nation’s 63 largest cities when it comes to the best places for first-time home buyers according to personal finance website WalletHub. The website considered housing affordability, real estate tax rates, property crime rates and other factors.

"July being one of the top months for home sales and nearly 40 percent of 2017's single-family home purchases made by first-time buyers, the personal-finance website WalletHub took an in-depth look at 2018's Best & Worst Cities for First-Time Home Buyers," explained a spokesperson for the website in releasing the findings on Monday. "WalletHub took the pulse of real estate in 300 cities of varying sizes using 27 key metrics."

When looking at those 300 cities ranging from small to large size, Charlotte ranked high, coming in 76th in the nation overall, 34th for real-estate market rate, and 87th for its affordability rate. When it came to quality of life, however, Charlotte fell to the lower half of the scale, coming in 174th, WalletHub said.

Click here to read the full report.

Charlotte wasn’t the only Tar Heel State city to rank high on the report. Tampa topped the list of the 63 largest cities for first time home buyers followed by Colorado Springs, Colorado and Raleigh, North Carolina.

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Boise, Idaho; Grand Rapids, Michigan, McKinney, Texas and Cary, North Carolina topped the list of midsize cities while Broken Arrow, Oklahoma; Centennial, Colorado and Thornton, Colorado were deemed best in the country among small cities.

"The search for a first home requires careful consideration of a number of factors. Buyers must balance what they want and need with to what they can afford," WalletHub penned. "Often, people begin searching for their dream homes without a realistic idea of market prices, interest rates or even their eligibility to get a mortgage."

SEE ALSO:

• These North Carolina Cities Among Best In US For Driving
• When It Comes To Being Family-Friendly, See How Charlotte Ranked
• These Fabulous Homes Will Make You Want To Move: Patch Picks

Patch Editor Paul Scicchitano contributed

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